List of pop culture references in Warcraft/BC
World of Warcraft: The Burning Crusade Classic fairy tales * ** One of the random Opera Event encounters in Karazhan is The Big Bad Wolf, where the boss is the wolf, who gives a Little Red Riding Hood debuff to players, transforming the player into a red-cloaked fast-running gnome. This event is a reference to the children's classic fairy tale, . Film and Television * ** When returning the makings of a trap to , he says "I love it when a plan comes together", a line spoken in almost every episode of The A-Team'' by . * ''' ** After respawning, says "I love the smell of nether in the morning. It smells like...victory" — one of the more famous quotes from above movie, originally "napalm" instead of "nether", said by Lieutenant Colonel Bill Kilgore. * ** Outside of the Skyguard Outpost in Blade's Edge Mountains, the Skyguard gear up for their flight on the Bash'ir Landing about every two hours. During their pep talk, the Skyguard Lieutenant asks "Anyone have any questions?" to which a Ranger replies "Look, man, I only need to know one thing, where they are." This is a direct quotation from the 1986 movie Aliens where the Marines are getting a briefing from their Lieutenant and Private First Class Jenette Vasquez chimes in cockily with the above quote. ** When engaged, the rare spawn Voidhunter Yar in Nagrand says "In the void, no one can hear you scream!" * ** Outside of the Circle of Blood, in Blade's Edge Mountains, there is a goblin named Meminnie, a reference to the character in Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me (and subsequent films). ** When you kiss the frog Mojo, he quotes Austin Powers "lookalike" phrases to you. * ** The Draenei prophet Velen is almost certainly a reference to the Minbari prophet . * **In the Blizzard website promoting the new Arena Tournament, the promotional pictures show a female blood elf named "Boomer" fighting against a draenei warrior named "Apollo" as well as a rogue canamedlled "Gaius", in reference to the Battlestar Galactica characters Sharon "Boomer" Valerii, Lee "Apollo" Adama, and Gaius Baltar. * ** Located in Netherstorm inside of the Eco-Dome stands Shauly Pore, which is a reference to actor and comedian , who starred in the 1996 film Bio-Dome. * ** In Hellfire Peninsula, the Horde Grand Master Engineering trainer is named "Zebig" and the Alliance one is named "Lebowski". * ** At the Ruins of Enkaat, Bot-Specialist Alley stands with her bots Maxx A. Million Mk. I, II, and V. The names of her bots are a reference to the ominous from Disney's . Additionally, her robot Maxx A. Million Mk. V offers a quest entitled which is a nod to the robot Number 5's exclamation, "Number Five is alive!" in the movie . * ** , which drops in Serpentshrine Cavern, is a reference to Buffy the Vampire Slayer. The phrase "From beneath you, it devours" comes from a reference in the last season of Buffy the Vampire Slayer; it translates to the gateway to the Sunnydale Hellmouth. The item's name is a play on "The Seal of Danzalthar" which is the name of the seal that covers the Sunnydale Hellmouth. * ** The Blood Elf female laugh is meant to reference the catchphrase of Doctor Blight from the TV series Captain Planet and the Planeteers. Also, the image that displays next to the health bars of Blood Elf females in your party that are outside your visual range bears a distinct resemblance to the Doctor. *' ' **Innkeeper Remi Dodoso's name in Area 52 spells out the notes "Re" "Mi" "Do" "Do" "So" in the scale. This is a reference to the musical theme used in the movie to communicate with the aliens which have landed on Earth. * ** " ", the quest to kill Arazzius the Cruel, is named for this film. * ** The race and culture of the Arrakoa along with the Darkstone of Terokk is a reference to the Skeksis in the 1982 film *' / ' ** Two Draenei NPCs are located upstairs of the Honor Hold Inn named Assistant Klatu and Anchorite Barata, a reference to the films The Day The Earth Stood Still and Army of Darkness, where the phrase "klaatu, barada, nikto" held importance. * ** "Dirty" Larry is found in the lower city of Shattrath near the Aldor bank. He is standing next to "Epic" Malone. Both bear the label . * ** "Dirty" Mike Crowe can be found in Theramore near the docks selling fish. This is a reference to Mike Rowe who is the star of the show. * ** In the Inn of Honor Hold, there is a questline which ends with helping a draenei exorcise a human lying on a bed. During this exorcism, the human body floats through the room and the draenei asks you to make sure nothing interrupts the process. Flying demon mobs spawn in the room which you have to destroy. During this whole sequence, the demon possessing the human also insults you and tries to scare you off with odd noises. Occasionally the body will vomit green stuff. * ** At Wildhammer Stronghold, outside the inn, you will find two dwarfs: Barimoke Wildbeard and Bron Goldhammer. They have a routine that starts of with "Bron! 'Ey, Bron! Hit me!". This is a reference to the first fight between the narrator and Tyler Durden. * ** Shark Bait is an item pickpocketed off of various naga in Outland as well as the Isle of Quel'Danas. This is taken directly from the nickname given to Nemo by his fellow tankmates. The picture used for Shark Bait is also a , just like Nemo. The quote "Just keep swimming..." was part of a catchy phrase said throughout the movie by Dory, voiced by . * **In Zangarmarsh, the engineering Grandmaster K. Lee Smallfry is a reference to the character , the engineer on the show. Her dialog includes the word "shiny", a common adjective for "good" used on the show. **The non-combat pet has the flavor text "Still flying..." which is a line from the show. **During Brewfest, one of the beers you can purchase is Mudder's Milk, which is from the episode 'Jaynestown'. **The reagent vendors in Ogri'la and the Lower City are named Mingo and Fanty, after the twins who engage Mal to perform the robbery from Serenity's opening sequence. While these characters in turn are references to thugs from the 1955 , the NPCs more likely reference the former. ** and , which are fished randomly from pools of Steam Pump Flotsam in Zangarmarsh, bear the description: "It reads 'Capissen 38' on the bottom." This is a reference to Kaylee Frye's line in the film "Serenity:" "Don't ride in anything with a Capissen 38 engine, they fall right out of the sky." starts an Alliance quest that you turn in to K. Lee Smallfry. **In the Sun's Reach Harbor, the Innkeeper Caregiver Inaara is a reference to the Companion character , a character portrayed by the Brazilian-American actress . Her face and outfit looks also very similar to the series' character. *' ' ** In the Apothecarium area is a large, stitched together thing that periodically blorps a load of the green funk that fills the Canals, vaguely reminiscient of the Slurm Queen's behind in the episode "Fry & The Slurm Factory" ** Outside The Exodar, a small black cat called "Nibblet" can be seen walking around. This is probably a reference to the monkey/cat-like pet alien "Nibbler" from the show. *' ' ** In the Blood Furnace instance of Hellfire Citadel, the first boss, The Maker drops Girdle of the Gale Storm. This is probably a reference to Gale Storm, an actress/singer from the 1940s and 1950s. She is best known for starring in the television comedy series My Little Margie, and she probably wore girdles like most women of that period. * **The Blood Elf NPC speech "Death to all who oppose us!" (when left-clicking on either male or female) may be a reference to a character in the final story who says the beforementioned after the main antagonist of the film turns him and his people into ruthless killing machines. * **The sword is indicated to be built to "Proximo's specification" in the item description. Proximo was the slave trader/former gladiator who bought Maximus and trained him as a gladiator. * ** The a quest in Outland named " " is a reference to I, Robot, see entry in Literature section. * ** There is an NPC in the Zul'Aman instance named Harrison Jones, an obvious reference to starring actor Harrison Ford and his role as the title character. In his dialogue, he accuses the player of only wanting to acquire Zul'Aman's treasures for themselves, instead of taking them to a museum where they belong, in his opinion (which is one of Jones' main motives for his expeditions). * ** The Grandmaster engineering trainer in Zabra'jin in Zangarmarsh is named Mack Diver, a reference to 's character MacGyver in the series of the same name. * ** The Skyguard folk at Skyguard Outpost occasionally say "Player is an officer and a gentlewoman/man." This is the same thing Maj. Margaret "Hot Lips" O'Houlihan says in the M.A.S.H. play — but note that "X is an officer and a gentleman" is a common military catchphrase in English. Hence the name of the movie, * ** In the draenei city of Shattrath, The Alliance Arathi Basin Battlemaster is named "Adam Eternum" in reference to the popular Masters of the Universe character "He-Man", whose real name is Adam. He also has a Zulian Battle-tiger as a pet, in reference to his tiger, Cringer. He also appears with a gnome behind him called "Oric Coe" in reference to Orko. When you talk to him, Adam Eternum says: ***"I came to Outland hoping to discover powerful artifacts to assist the League of Arathor against the Defilers in Arathi Basin... but all I've found is this smashing magical loincloth, a ridiculous gnome sidekick, and an egomaniacal undead stalker who insists I've stolen his grey skull, or some such. In any case, would you care to join the League in their fight while I continue my search?" **Eternum's Horde battlemaster counterpart, Keldor the Lost, continues the reference to Masters of the Universe. "Keldor" was the identity of He-Man's arch-nemesis, prior to his transformation into the evil . Being undead, Keldor the Lost's hood, glowing eyes, dark blue attire, and skull-tipped staff all bear a striking resemblance to Skeletor. If you speak to him, he will say: ***"I have travelled far in my search of a way to ultimately defeat the League of Arathor in the Arathi Basin, but that Lion-clothed lummox, Adam Eternum hounds my every move! Still, if slayers like you would return to Azeroth, perhaps we could defeat the Alliance once and for all!" * ** The Netherstorm Agents in Area 52 are all dressed in tuxedos resembling the business suits from the Men in Black comics and film. They also carry the huge guns that equipped in the first film. The fact that they guard 'Area 52' is appropriate, as it is a take on 'Area 51'. ** When you leave 'Area 52' you will be hit by a flash of light and you receive a buff called A-52 Neuralyzer whos tooltip say "The flash of light you did not see did not erase your memories". This is a reference to the "Neuralizer" device that the Men in Black used to erase and alter the memories of the people who saw an alien. * ** The Dark Iron Guzzlers who attack during Brewfest sometimes shout, "No one expects the Dark Iron Dwarves!", a reference to the recurring Spanish Inquisition sketch. * ** At the Ruins of Enkaat, Bot-Specialist Alley stands with her bots Maxx A. Million Mk. I, II, and V. The names of her bots are a reference to Monty Python and the Holy Grail, where King Arthur goes to 'cook' the Holy Hand Grenade and exclaims "One, two, FIVE!".'' * ** The male Blood Elf's dance moves are taken directly from Napoleon's choreographed dance sequence at the end of the movie. * ** In Nagrand there is a quest given by Saurfang the Younger called , could very well be directly related to the popular by the same name. The emotions described within the quest text seem to confirm this more. Saurfang not returning to his home could be describing in the film (the main male character of the film), Jack (like the quest giver) has abandoned the ways of his past and is not returning to them (that being the ways of the ). * **The innkeeper at The Temple of Telhamat, in Hellfire Peninsula is named Caregiver Ophera Windfury . * ** In Bloodmaul Ravine, players can find the ghostly disembodied head of T'chali the Witch Doctor which is possibly a reference to another similarly colored disembodied head, . * ** The lines recited by The Arcane Patrollers in the Ruins of Silvermoon are RoboCop's prime directives: "Protect the innocent", "Serve the Public Trust", and "Uphold the Law." * ** There is a quest called , which is obtainable from Kirin'Var Village near Sunfury Hold in southeastern Netherstorm, a reference to the famous Christopher Walkin sketch. * **There is a quest NPC in Eversong Woods named Groundskeeper Wyllithen, a reference to of Simpsons fame. **The skinning trainer in Shattrath City is called Seymour , a reference to the principal of Springfield Elementary School. **The Mr. Pinchy item is a direct reference to the lobster that Homer raises and is forced to eat by himself when he accidentally cooks it. **Millhouse Manastorm, a gnome mage, appears and assists your party during the final boss fight in Arcatraz. This is a reference to , Bart Simpson's best friend. * **Near the entrance to the Auchenai Crypts in Auchindoun, a small draenei child named Ha’lei gives the quest , a reference to Haley Joel Osment's character in The Sixth Sense saying "I see dead people". * **In Nagrand at Nesingwary Safari, there is a gnome style plane crashed into the ground. Unmoving snake critters spawn atop it. * ** In SG-1, "Area 52" is another name for . ** In the Champion's Hall, players can find Lieutenant Karter, Captain O'Neal, and Guard Hammon, each bearing likeness to their respective namesake. Lieutenant Jackspring is also a possible reference to Dr. Jackson, as he is looking at a bookshelf. In addition, Sergeant Major Clate is a probable reference to Teal'c, since their names are anagrams. ** The Arcane Portals found throughout the game, most easily found in the Wizard's Sanctum, at the The Mage Quarter in Stormwind, uncannily resembles the Stargate itself. Its circular, large structure mimics it; the liquid-like consistency of the "opening" is exactly like the "event horizon" of an active Stargate and the Glyphs covering the ring resembles the carvings that indicates gate-addresses. * ** Episode "Make Love, Not Warcraft": Though was fictional at the time of the South Park tribute episode, a sword with the same name but with different, less overpowered stats, was supposed to be made available in The Burning Crusade. The name Salzman in the item's description is also a reference to the character Salzman, an accountant in that episode. However, did not make it through to The Burning Crusade's final release, the item was replaced by sadly this item was crafted to Proximo's specification instead of Salzman. was available as an arena reward during The Burning Crusade beta while the exists as an arena reward in the live version of The Burning Crusade. ** Episode "Make Love, Not Warcraft": Ethereal NPCs near Manaforge Ultris in the Netherstorm quotes this episode saying "How do you defeat that which has no life?", referring to the Ethereum Gladiator, who's always looking for a bigger and better challenge. ** Episode "Gnomes": One of the draenei Male's jokes mimics the ' plan for profit. *' ' **There is a quest in the Netherstorm called You're Hired, where you search for Etherlithium Matrix Crystals, a play on the Dilithium Matrix Crystals used to redirect energy generated in warp engines. ** In Exodar, there is a group of draenei that walk around checking out the holograms, named Audrid, Curzon, Emony, Tobin and Torias. They were all hosts of the Dax symbiont in Deep Space Nine. ** After completing the Netherstorm quest That Little Extra Kick, the giver and receiver of this quest (B.O.O.M. Master Mixologist Boots) dies. A goblin paramedic rushes in to stimulate his heart. After a couple of shocks, the paramedic screams "Dammit Boots, I'm a doctor, not a priest!" which is a reference to 's line "Dammit Jim, I'm a doctor, not a " from the original Star Trek series. ** In Toshley's Station, there is a gnome standing to the north named Smiles O'Byron. is also referred to as Smiley in the alternate universe episodes of 'Deep Space Nine'. **Warden Treelos (Cenarion Thicket, Terokkar Forest) is a Night Elf NPC who has gone insane, and sometimes says "There are FOUR lights!", which refers to the double The Next Generation episode "Chain of Command". Captain Jean-Luc Picard is captured by Cardassians, then tortured to break his will, in order to get him to admit he sees five lights where there are actually only four. **In Booty Bay and Tanaris we find two engineers manning the teleporters named Jhordy Lapforge and Scooty, nods to for Star Trek: The Next Generation and to for the original series. **The cave below Manaforge Ara in the Netherstorm is named Trelleum Mine, from the mineral known as in Star Trek: Enterprise. **The zone of Netherstorm has similar colors and chaotic theme as the Delphic Expanse. Prior to patch 2.4 warlocks could not summon in the Netherstorm like certain starship functions do not work in the Expanse. **On the Isle of Quel'Danas, the draenei Dragonhawk Master is named Ohura, a tribute to , communications officer on the USS Enterprise. **In Area 52 in Netherstorm there is a goblin named Chief Engineer Trep, a reference to Star Trek: Enterprise's Chief Engineer Charles "Trip" Tucker III. *' ' ** In the Badlands, Lotwil Veriatus's robot Servo says "I am well versed in over 4 languages". This is a reference to C-3PO who states "I am well-versed in over 6 million forms of communication" several times. ** The racetrack in the Shimmering Flats features a vehicle that is strikingly similar to the podracers found in Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace. ** The race announcer is a two headed ogre is named Fobeed referencing the two headed podracer announcer in The Phantom Menace whose names were Fode and Beed. ** In the hangar in the Military Ward of Ironforge sits a dwarf pilot by the name of Xiggs Fuselighter, wearing a white and orange flightsuit, black gloves, and boots strikingly similar to that of an X-Wing pilot. This is a reference to Luke Skywalker's friend Biggs Darklighter, whom you see in Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope. ** The tooltip of the buff icon for the Priest ability Spirit Of Redemption reads "You have become more powerful than anyone can possibly imagine." which is an almost verbatim reference to Obi-Wan Kenobi's line in Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope. ** Female dwarves and gnomes have a hairstyle similar to that of "Princess Leia". ** In Un'Goro crater, near the exit to Silithus, there is a level 1 raptor named Obi, a reference to Obi-Wan (Obi 1). ** The Argent Avenger, a one-handed sword resulting from a quest in Stratholme, vaguely resembles a blue lightsaber. Also, Teebu's Blazing Longsword is it's red counterpart. ** In a quest to rescue the captured Princess Moira Bronzebeard, you find her wearing an outfit that bears a striking resemblance to Leia's slave outfit in Star Wars Episode VI: Return of the Jedi, as well as the same hairstyle. ** In Blade's Edge Mountains there is a place called Toshley's Station. In Star Wars there was a place called Toshe Station in which Luke Skywalker went to in the beginning of one of the Movies to pick up some Power Converters. The quest "Picking Up Some Power Converters" will reward you with a Power Converter. The two descriptions on the item are both references to Episode IV: "Use: Destroys technological terror constructs." is from Darth Vader's quote "Don't be too proud of this technological terror you've constructed," and "The next best thing to going to the Academy" is because Luke's always talking about going to the Academy. The Power Converter shoots off a red rocket that many think looks like the missile Luke fires to destroy the Death Star. ** Roll a Draenei and you'll eventually get a quest called "The Kessel Run" given to you by an NPC named Kessel. You don't have to do this quest in "less than twelve parsecs" like Han Solo was able to do with the Millennium Falcon, but you will have to complete this quest in less than 15 minutes. ** Nearby Toshley's Station stands R3D0, a remote sentry that can speak in three different languages (Human, Gnomish, and Dwarven). This is an obvious reference to C3PO, who was able to speak six million languages. The name is also a mesh between R2D2 and C3P0, the two robots in the movie. ** In the Scarlet Raven Tavern in Darkshire there is a barkeeper named "Barkeeper Han" which is a reference to Han solo in Star Wars. ** In Nagrand a Clefthoof Elite Named Mob is Called Banthar. If you drop the r off the end you get Bantha, a creature very similar to a Wooly Mammoth in the Star Wars Series, Banthar also look similar to a Wooly Mammoth. ** The Azuremyst Isles are filled with NPCs, quests, and items that reference to several science fiction stories, most notably Star Wars. For instance, the flight master of Blood Watch is named Laando (after ). In addition to this, a quest on Bloodmyst Isle is named . ** Baron Sablemane will give you a quest named — likely a reference to 's famous catch phrase. ** Toshley's Station also has a quest named, Cutting Your Teeth. The rewards from this quest include Vibro Shanker, Vibro Dagger, and Vibro Sword. These weapons are a reference to the Star Wars, Vibrosword, Vibroaxe, Vibrodagger, which in turn by other sci-fi universes of that age. ** The Halaa Blade Merchants in Halaa in Nagrand are Coreiel when Halaa is Horde controlled and Aldraan when Alliance controlled. These are references to 's homeworld of and 's homeworld of . ** The NPC, Commander Duron may be named after Kyp Duron from the Star Wars novels. * ** At Toshley's Station in Blade's Edge Mountains, you can find a gnome named Razak Ironsides patrolling the station's ramparts, which is a likely reference to Lieutenant Jean Rasczak played by . This reference is highlighted by the fact that he is defending the outposts against Ravagers, a kind of creature resembling the insect-aliens of the movie. There is also a guard named Dizzy Dina, in reference to Dizzy Flores, played by . ** Sometimes an event will start at Toshley's Station, where Ravagers attack the station. As the gnome guards rush to defend, you will hear Razak Ironsides yelling various quotes from Micheal Ironside in the Starship Troopers movie: "Come on you apes, you want to live forever?", "I have one rule: everybody fights, no one quits." and "You don't do your job, I will shoot you myself.". Also, at one point he calls in for reinforcements, a group of Gnomes on Mechanostriders who are led by a robot, the group is called "Roughriders", possibly after the self-proclaimed "Roughnecks", the name that the main characters from the movie gave themselves. More likely, it is a homage to former U.S. President Teddy Roosevelt's calvary unit The Rough Riders, which fought in the Spanish-American War. * ** The cooking trainer in Shattrath City is named Jack Trapper , a reference to , 's character in the TV shows " " and " ," who was a professional chef. ** There is a quest on Azuremyst Isle called "Tree's Company". * ** During the fight with Anetheron in Mount Hyjal, demons called Towering Infernals are summoned to attack the raid. *' ' ** One of the quests in Outland summons a scripted scene involving a gigantic Fel Reaver named Negatron, a nod to the leader . * ** In Hellfire Peninsula, there is a quest given by Foreman Biggums called that has you go out and kill sand worms in the area. This is a reference to the movie "Tremors", starring Kevin Bacon and Fred Ward, in which sand worms out in the Nevada desert come up out of the ground and eat people. In this movie, Fred Ward asks Kevin Bacon "Is this a job for an intelligent man?", to which Kevin Bacon replies "Well, show me one and I'll ask him." * **When walking by the refugees in Shattrath City's lower gate, one of them can be heard saying "Hey, Man? Got some money? I got five kids to feed!" just like Bennie the cab driver from Total Recall. * ** There is a quest in the Azuremyst Isles called "Red Snapper - Very Tasty!" which is a direct quote from the "Wheel Of Fish" scene in "UHF" starring . * ** In Zangarmarsh, there is a Horde quest called "Nothin' Says Lovin' Like a Big Stinger", and the very first paragraph in the quest description reads, "She will be mine. Oh yes- She will be mine", a famous catchphrase Wayne uses when talking about Cassandra, the guitar, and other things. * '' **With World of Warcraft: Wrath of the Lich King, there is an Achievement called "The Old Gnome and the Sea. Games * ** The sounds made by the variations of Stags is almost directly taken from the sound palette of the imps found in the game . * ** The sound the Felboars and Helboars of outland shriek when they aggro is strongly reminiscent of the LARD pig-cops you encounter in several areas of this game. But then again, they are all based on pig squeals. * ** There is a random drop in Outland that is called , probably a reference to , where main character uses a "Gunblade" as his signature weapon. The WoW weapon, however, does not look anything like the Gunblade used in FFVIII. * ** Lake Jorune in Terokkar is a reference to the Skyrealms of Jorune pen-and-paper roleplaying game from the '80s and early '90s. * ** In Netherstorm, there is a rare spawn called Chief Engineer Lorthander, who wields a Keyblade, a reference to the weapons in the Kingdom Hearts series. * ** The quest , part of the quest line in Netherstorm has you retrieve an item that summons Archmage Vargoth's familiar Glacius. **There is an Elite level 62 Rare spawn sand worm in Hellfire Peninsula named Fulgorge. Both this and the previous quest reference the characters Glacius, an alien made of ice, and Fulgore, a cyborg, from the Rare fighting series Killer Instinct. * ** There is a quest called "To Legion Hold" in Shadowmoon Valley, where you have to spy on enemies while you are disguised as a wooden crate, in reference to the Metal Gear Solid series, where the main character often uses a cardboard box to move around undetected. *' ': **The Ravager bears an extremely striking resemblance to the Scrabs in the various games. * ** The Essence of Anger part of the Reliquary of Souls boss encounter in the Black Temple will shout "Beware - I live.", a quote Sinistar shouts when he is fully formed and start actively seeking the player out, in the 1982 arcade game classic Sinistar. * ** The male Blood Elf Rogue's Eviscerate animation is identical to Ken and Ryu's Shoryuken animation. ** A Tauren NPC in Camp Mojache in Feralas is named "Hadoken Swiftstrider". ** "Hadoken Swiftstrider" the Tauren NPC in Camp Mojache, Feralas gives you a quest called "Alpha Strike" which is a name combination of "Street Fighter Alpha" series and "Street Fighter 3rd Strike". * ** In Shadow Moon Valley, there is a quest called Setting Up The Bomb which is a reference to the mistranslated quote "Somebody set up us the bomb!" * ** In the Blade's Edge Mountains, there is Gruul's Lair. In Gruul's Lair, there is Gruul, a massive cyclopean giant, and a reference to the Gruul guild in Magic: The Gathering,which was lead by the cyclops Borborygmos. * ** The female Blood Elf's dance moves are taken from the animated "Always" promotional video for the Korean video game Yogurting. The video became a minor internet phenomena, spawning another popular video of a dancer using the moves with Britney Spears' "Toxic" playing in the background. Literature * ** The a quest in Outland named " " is probably a reference to Isaac Asimov's , widely known through the 2004 film (YMMV regarding fidelity.) It may be a reference to which has been adapted for (both series). * ** One of the Opera Events in Karazhan is the Wizard of Oz, referring to the famous children's novel . Both the fight and the book have shared characters and costumes including the Wicked Witch, a dog named Toto, a girl named Dorothy, the Tinman, the Lion, Scarecrow, and even tornadoes. * ** A death knight quest Quest:How To Win Friends And Influence Enemies is a play on the title of Dale Carnegie's book . ** A gnome book How to Win Friends and Influence People shares the same title. * ** The quest giver Grok is a reference to Heinlein's verb , simplified to understand, presented in . * ** The quest giver Hemet Nesingwary- an anagram of Ernest Hemingway- is the typical "great white hunter" found in many Hemingway stories. The achievement is a reference to Hemingway's Hills Like White Elephants. * ** The burrower mobs throughout several zones in Outland seem to be directly based on the sandworms of Dune. ** One quest in the Bone Wastes involves using an item called a "Fumper" to summon an enormous burrower called "Hai'Shulud," whose title is "The Bone Emperor", a pun on the name of the sandworms of Dune named "Shai-Hulud". The quest rewards are daggers with names based on Dune characters and weapons made from the sandworms' teeth. ** See also references to Herbert's found in Silithus. * ** The name of the tauren at the Nesingwary Safari in Nagrand, Shado 'Fitz' Farstrider, appears to be a reference to the character FitzChivalry "Fitz" Farseer, and possibly also to his mentor Chade, from Hobb's Farseer Trilogy. In addition to the similar names, Shado wears a wolfshead helm, and FitzChivalry was bonded with a wolf. (As possibly more of a stretch, FitzChivalry was a Wit or "beast magic" user, and seen by some as half-man/half-beast, a possibly fit description for a tauren.) * ** The Black Morass, an instance in the Caverns of Time set in what is to become the Blasted Lands, may refer to Lovecraft's "The Call of Cthulhu", in which Inspector Legrasse, investigating reports of strange rituals in New Orleans swamplands, is described to have "plowed on through the black morass". The design of the zone itself closely adheres to Lovecraft's description of the New Orleans marshes. * ** In the raid instance Karazhan, one of the boss encounters in the Opera Event consists of Romulo and Julianne, playing off of Shakespeare's tragedy . Julianne can also drop . Romulo and Julianne also use famous quotes from Shakespeare's original play while engaging in combat. ** One of the quests in Bloodmaul Ravine is called " " — a reference to Mercutio's oft repeated curse "a plague on both your houses!" * ** During the Prince Malchezaar encounter in Karazhan he can be heard saying "Time is the fire in which you'll burn..." which is a reference to the poem "Calmly We Walk Through This April's Day" by Delmore Schwartz (the same poem is also quoted in the "Star Trek: Generations" movie). * ** A sword named " " is a quest reward from killing spiders in the Ghostlands, taking its name from Bilbo's sword "Sting" in . ** In Honor Hold there is an NPC named "Marshal Isildor", a possible reference to in Lord of the Rings, the man who cut the ring from Sauron's finger. ** One of the lines spoken by the Draenei leader, Velen, is "Not all who wander are lost." This is a line from the poem about in the book. ** The history of the elven race, including the sundering of the High Elves from the Night Elves and most of Azeroth's prehistory is a close parallel to the Simarillion. ** Two worgs in Zeth'Gor are named Ripp and Feng, possibly referring to 's dogs Grip and Fang. * ** In Hellfire Peninsula, there is a demon boss named Doom Lord Kazzak, who shares a name with the hound of space, Kazak, from Vonnegut's book The Sirens of Titan. Music * ** The female Blood Elf dance is pieced together from different parts of the choreography to American pop legend Britney Spears' song " ." * ** in Azuremyst Isle could be a reference to the metal band of that name. Also, the level to obtain this quest is 6 - "Six" being one of the songs on the album as well as featured in . * ** In the Allerian Stronghold, there is a NPC named Lady Dena Kennedy. * **In the same discussion between the Engineering Crewmember and Experimental Pilot at Area 52 mentioned above, the Experimental Pilot also says a line from John Denver's song "Leaving on a Jet Plane". "All my bags are packed, I'm ready to go." * **A quest in the Azuremyst Isles is called "Precious and Fragile Things Need Special Handling", taken word-for-word from the first line of . **The Blasted Lands quest "Everything Counts in Large Amounts" is a line from the song Everything Counts. **The title of the Netherwing daily quest "The Deadliest Trap Ever Laid" is a line from the song "Home". * **In the Violet Tower in Netherstorm, Archmage Vargoth will quote several lines from when you talk to him multiple times. * **There is a vendor outside of the Mana-Tombs named "Slim" -- he is a . This is a reference to one of Eminem's stage names, Slim Shady, and also to his hit song " ". Said vendor's dialog includes "No my name isn't really Slim." Thus, he isn't "The Real Slim Shady". * ** One of the quests on Bloodmyst Isle is called "Artifacts Of The Blacksilt", which may be a reference to the In Flames song "Artifacts Of The Black Rain". ** There's an Emblem of Heroism reward, a trinket called "Mirror of Truth", which may be a reference to the In Flames song "The Mirror's Truth". * **At Area 52 in Netherstorm, in a discussion between Engineering Crewmember and Experimental Pilot the last one says "Oh no no no I'm a rocket man" from the Elton John's song "Rocket Man". This entire conversation is comprised of paraphrased lyrics from the song—at one point, Engineering Crewmember asks Experimental Pilot why he doesn't bring his family to Area 52, to which the reply is "This isn't the kind of place to raise your kids. It's cold, and there'd be no one to raise them." This is also a reference to William Shatner's spoken word cover of the song, considering the setting of Area 52. * ** The Blood Elf female has an emote where she says "My mana tap brings all the boys to the yard." Referring to a phrase in the song " " by Kelis. * **A quest in Blade's Edge Mountains is called . * ** The male Draenei's dance moves are taken from the video for the song " " by Daler Mehndihttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s9qvCTdBLDs which was a moderate internet phenomenon. * **An NPC named Osborne the Night Man is a possible reference to the Prince of Darkness, Ozzy Osbourne. The NPC trains rogues in Stormwind city. * & ** A pair of shoes named drop from Kaz'rogal in the Hyjal Summit event in Caverns of Time. Carl Perkins wrote a song with that name, famously covered by Elvis Presley, and the yellow flavor text on the shoes in the game "Keep Off" is a reference to the lyrics. * ** The Innkeeper in Thrallmar is named Floyd Pinkus . ** Otonambusi, the General Goods vendor in Azure Watch says, "How can you have any pudding if you don't eat your fish?" ("Another Brick in the Wall Part 2") ** Triage Quest: When performing the Triage quest for Artisan First Aid (Theramore - Alliance / Hammerfall - Horde), soldiers who you fail to heal that are about to die say "Goodbye cruel world...I'm leavin' you today...goodbye, goodbye, goodbye..." These are the opening lines of the song 'Goodbye, Cruel World' from Pink Floyd's album The Wall. ** The NPC lying down in Nessingway's Camp in Nagrand is called Harold Lane, which could be a reference to Pink Floyd's Song Arnold Lane. ** Trash mobs inside Auchindoun's Mana Tombs will sometimes say "If you can hear this whisper you're dying." This could be a reference to the similar message that appears in The Great Gig in the Sky off Pink Floyd's Dark Side of the Moon. * ** One of the /silly jokes for the male Blood Elf is: "Don't you wish your girlfriend was hot like me?" This is a line from the Pussycat Dolls' " " song. * ** A drop from Ramparts off the last boss, the plate belt Tenacious Defender has the flavor text, "It has the power... to move you" — itself a reference to their song "Wonderboy". **In the German version, this item was translated as "Die Toten Hosenträger" (The Dead Suspenders) referring to , with the flavor text "Steh auf, wenn du am Boden bist." referring to one of their songs. Other * ** In the Outland, there is a neutral city in the Netherstorm called Area 52. (see Men In Black in the Film and Television section) * **The flightmaster at Spinebreaker Post is named Amilya Airheart, after the famous female pilot. * ** The Paladin ability Avenger's Shield mimics the trademark attack of , the leader of the superhero team . * Girls Gone Wild: **There is a quest in Hellfire called * ** There is a fruit vendor in the lower city of Shattrath named Granny Smith, a reference to the apple of the same name. * ** At Azure Watch, there's a Hunter trainer named Acteon, who sends players on various quests to hunt down bucks and stags in the area. In Greek myth, was a hunter who was turned into a stag as punishment by the god Artemis for seeing her bathe nude. After being turned into a stag, he was torn to pieces by his own hounds. ** Also, on the road to Azure Watch form the draenei starting area, there is a fishing trainer named Diktynna, who gives a quest to gather fish with a net. This is a play on Dictynna, a goddess of fishing and nets. ** Odesyus' Landing on Azuremyst Isle, and Admiral Odesyus are references to Homer's . The Blacksmith in the camp is named Calypso. In "The Iliad" Odysseus washes up on Calypso's island, where she forces him to be her lover for seven years before he escapes. * **In Zangarmarsh at Sporegar (19,50) is Gzhun'tt - possibly a reference to the post German and Yiddish word for health. * ** In Shadowmoon Valley, there is quest called the Journal of Val'zareq: Portends of War, which leads you to the captured Marcus Aurelion . He is being held prison at Crimson Watch. This is a reference to Marcus Aurelius, an Emperor of Rome. * **In Silvermoon, the Arcane Guardians sometimes say "Happiness is mandatory, Citizen!". This is a direct quote from the Role-Playing game Paranoia. * **One of the bar patrons in Lower Shattrath City is a blood elf female named Haris Pilton made to resemble the infamous heiress. Her dog Tinkerbell is also wandering around the inn. * ** In the quest , Foreman Razelcraz asks you to rescue Manni, Moh and Jakk from the Fel Orc camps. This is a reference to the Emanuel "Manny" Rosenfeld, Maurice "Moe" Strauss, and Graham "Jack" Jackson who are the founders of The Pep Boys auto parts supply chain. The :Manny, Moe, and Jack" characters were modeled after the founders. * Realm Switcher: **In the quest "The Totem of Kar'dash (Horde)", while rescuing the Mag'har Captive, he screams "FROST SHOCK!!!" This may be a reference to the famous "Switcher" video.http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fpoGKw6L4cM * **One of the quest rewards for , given by Timothy Daniels in Orebor Harborage, is Crimson Steer Energy Drink, a reference to the energy drink Red Bull. *'Watcher Leesa'oh': **In Zangarmarsh at the Cenarion Watchpost (23,65) is Watcher Leesa'oh - possibly a reference to actress Leesa Oh * Warden Moi'bff Jill: **In Nagrand, the Kurenai NPC who accepts obsidian warbeads for kurenai reputation has a name that is a reference to a popularized Cingular commercial in which a girl says to her mother, "Idk, my bff Jill?". References